LTG (Ret.) Johannes Kert, Marshall Center Graduate of the Month, June 2008
The Marshall Center has named LTG (ret.) Johannes Kert, the first Estonian to graduate from the Center, as Graduate of the Month for June 2008.
Johannes Kert, born in Petseri, Estonia, earned a master’s degree in physical education at Estonia’s Tartu University in 1981, and completed obligatory service in the Soviet Army as a junior officer in 1985.
In the years before Estonia’s independence, Kert worked as a physical education instructor and coach of Greco-Roman wrestling as well as a professional photographer.
Kert became increasingly involved in the Estonian independence movement and began actively working to re-establish Estonia’s pre-war Kaitseliit or Defense League (an equivalent to the National Guard in the United States). The Kaitseliit was officially reestablished on Feb. 17, 1990.
In 1991, he served as the Chief of Staff of the Tartu Regional Kaitseliit Unit and later that year was promoted first to Commander of the Tartu Regional Kaitseliit Unit and eventually in December 1992 to National Commander of the Kaitseliit at the rank of major.
In 1994 he was selected as one of two Estonians to attend the inaugural 19-week executive course at the just-opened Marshall Center. Recalling those days, Kert wrote recently, “The world was just brightening for all of us who studied at the Marshall Center and this was my first real experience of thinking strategically. As a result of that course, we all became better able to organize our thoughts on a much larger scale than ever before.”
After completing the executive course, Kert transferred to the Estonian Defense Forces and progressed rapidly in his career. By January 1996 he had been promoted four times, to the rank of Lieutenant General, and appointed Commander of the Estonian Defense Forces, where he served until June 2000. During that time he also attended the Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, where he was recently honored as a Hall of Fame Graduate.
In 2002, Kert was appointed as Estonia’s Permanent Military Representative to NATO Headquarters in Brussels, where he played an important role in the lead-up to Estonia’s dual accession to both NATO and the European Union in 2004. Kert retired from active military service and his NATO assignment in early 2008 to return to Estonia as a civilian advisor to the Estonian Minister of Defense and to play a leading role in the development of the Alliance’s new Cyber Defence Center in Estonia.
Reflecting on his achievements to date, Kert noted, “It is difficult to imagine my latest work at the Cyber Defence Center without the experience I first gained at the Marshall Center.”
The opportunity provided by the Marshall Center is just as valuable for civilian and military leaders today as it was for the first class, according Kert.
“Estonia (and I am confident that I can say the same for all of Eastern Europe) is thankful for the creation of the Marshall Center, but the threats are not over yet,” Kert said. “The Marshall Center continues to look to the future as these threats become even more sophisticated. Opening the eyes of our next generation of leaders and providing a diplomatic atmosphere, where people from different countries and cultures can have open and frank discussions, is still extremely valuable.”
Beginning with March 2007, the Marshall Center Graduate Support Office has featured a Marshall Center Graduate of the Month. The purpose of this initiative is to feature Marshall Center alumni who are playing an active role in furthering the ideals of the Marshall Center in creating a more stable security environment by advancing democratic institutions and relationships; promoting active, peaceful security cooperation; and enhancing enduring partnerships among the nations of North America, Europe, Eurasia, and beyond.
